Amy Harmon has done it again! Do I really need to say anymore? If you've read any of her other work, then you know that she's an amazing writer.
If you know me, then you know that I have professed my love for her work. She's one of my go-to authors. She's also one that I have learned to One-Click and Pre-Order because I know that she will not disappoint me.
I actually waited a couple of days to sit down and write my review for this book. I wanted to make sure that my feelings and emotions had settled.
"This is the story of love with no end... though it took me a while to get there.
If I tell you right up front, right in the beginning that I lost him, it will be easier for you to bear."
That's what she gives us in the Prologue. I took tentative steps after I read this. I knew that whatever she gave us would be good, I just didn't know what the journey would be to get the great.
The book is separated into two parts. And it alternates between Georgia and Moses' characters. Which I thought was great!
We start off with Georgia telling us about Moses' story. He was a "crack baby", and if that doesn't tug at your heart, then I don't know what will.
"People love babies, even sick babies. Even crack babies. But babies grow up to be kids. Nobody really wants messed up kids."
We get his back story, which totally breaks my heart. I wanted to crawl into the book and just hold that little boy and tell him that someone cared for him.
We also get to know Georgia a little bit. She's a strong and beautiful smart girl. She knows what she wants in life and is willing to do whatever it takes to get there.
"Whatever it was, when Moses came to Levan, he was like water- cold, deep, unpredictable, and, like the pond up the canyon, dangerous, because you could never see what was beneath the surface. And just like I'd done all my life, I jumped in head first, even though I'd been forbidden. But this time, I drowned."
I knew that whatever happened between those two, would be good.
"She was a small town girl with a simple way of speaking and thinking, a frank way of being that turned me on and turned me off at the same time. I wanted to run from her. But at the same time, I spent all my time thinking about her."
I really really liked Moses. Yes he was different. But remember, different is good every now and then! He was an extremely talented artist. Unfortunately, not everyone appreciated his art.
"I think your work is strange and beautiful, Moses. Like a discordant melody that resolves itself as you listen..."
The trials that both went through separately and together were gut wrenching. I hated the suffering that happened because everyone else was ignorant and stupid towards Moses.
"We can't escape ourselves, Tag. Here, there, half-way across the world, or in a psych ward in Salt Lake City. I'm Moses and you're Tag. And that part never changes. So either we figure it out here or we figure it out there. But we still gotta deal. And death won't change that".
I absolutely love the friendship that he found in Tag. He was an anchor and understanding that he needed. It worked both ways for them both.
"We'll just keep running, Moses. How did you say it? Here, there, on the other side of the world? We can't escape ourselves. So we stick together until we find ourselves, all right? Until we figure out how to deal."
That's the kind of friendship that everyone always wishes for. To have someone that is willing to go anywhere and everywhere to help you with your problems, and is willing to admit that they need help as well.
I liked Tag a lot. I hate how they met and the circumstances that brought them together, but I understand it.
I don't like how Moses was brought back into Levan, but I do. If you've read the book, then you'll understand what I mean by this. My heart broke all over again once I figured out the situation. My heart hurt, for Georgia, Moses and everyone else.
Eli. Such a beautiful description of who he was and what he accomplished.
"I knew, and yet it still hurt. So much. I didn't lose him the way Georgia did. But I still lost him. I lost him before I knew him. And I wasn't prepared."
"I can't tell you how it felt to say goodbye. How it felt to choose. But in the end, mercifully, the choice was made for me, and I didn't have to do either."
There are some definite twists in this book that I totally did not see coming. I was blindsided by them. But then the light switch turned on and I was pissed. Because of the suffering that happened. So many lives were affected.
On a side note, I TOTALLY LOVED that she mentions Josie Jensen, and that she and Sam make a couple of appearances in this book. Love them!!!
I don't think that I can fully express my feelings for this book. It was beautiful and amazing. She did such a great job. She managed to allow me to loose myself in her writing.
Moses stuck with me even after I finished reading this book. But it was more than just him, or his description. It was his life and the experiences that he went through. It was the fact that he was able to take something bad and cruel (because that's what everyone else saw) and turn it into something beautiful.
I love it and I don't think that I can get enough of it. I'll definitely be re-reading this book.
I cried and was so emotional. And I think that's the beauty that I want to find when I loose my self in a book. To be able to feel so much for those characters. To be able to travel on those journeys with them, and to rejoice when they find and discover what their greats are.
